Remember Miss Belvedere, the ’57 Plymouth that the fine folks of Tulsa buried when it was new, then unearthed two years ago? Yes, it emerged rusty and crusty, but the effort to preserve the car is ongoing, and for our latest episode of Hemmings Classic Car Radio, David LaChance spoke with Dwight Foster of Ultra One, the company that is working to get Miss Belvedere back into presentable shape.

Also in this episode, a brief overview of cash for clunkers and why it’s a sorry piece of wrongheaded legislation. Yes, familiar territory for constant readers of the Hemmings blog, but it’s worth repeating while the matter remains under consideration.

As an added bonus, we have exclusive photos of Miss Belvedere and the de-rusting process you may want to peruse while listening to the latest episode.

For its trip by flatbed back east, the Belvedere was shrink-wrapped. Thoughts of transferring the car to an enclosed trailer were abandoned when it was discovered just how badly the frame had deteriorated.

Here’s the reason the Plymouth is getting a donor frame. Decades of submersion left the original too weak to support the car.

Ultra One uses a pump, a hose and a kiddie pool to keep a continuous stream of Safest Rust Remover on one area at a time. The product leaves the 52-year-old paint unharmed.

If a picture is worth 1,000 words, this one must be worth 1,000 “ughs.” This is the before…

and this is the after.

There are a half-dozen or so types of material used in the car’s ashtray, and Safest Rust Remover is safe for every one. With the corrosion gone, it’s possible to see that this is a brand-new, unused part.

These are the surviving sisters of the late Ray Humbertson, whose 1957 guess of Tulsa’s 2007 population was the closest of all those who entered to win Miss Belvedere. Catherine, on the left, is 94, and Levita is 85.

I’ve used some of it, and it does do a pretty amazing job. I used it to de-rust a vent door for my ’62 Comet, and in addition to removing the visible rust it got the rust out of the hinge. So the previously stuck solid hinge worked like new. It did dissolve the paint on a bike fender and discolor the metal slightly, but that was probably because I forgot and left it in there for a week.

The stuff is really expensive for the amount you need for any big de-rusting job, but getting a few gallons to clean up rusty hardware or small parts that would be hard to get clean otherwise is worth it.

Dwight’s got his work cut out for him, I have to admit. And I couldn’t help but chuckle just a little listening to their plans on removing the interior door panels (intact) with the doors closed and still on the car. I took me about an hour each to remove the ones off of my 57 4dr Belvedere junk yard survivor, and was after I’d removed the doors! Best of luck guys, you’re gonna need it (and those springs behind the door handles and window cranks are leave you inventing all kinds of new cuss words).

My wife and I were invited up to see Miss Belvedere in June of 2008.
It was a site to see for sure.
Dwight Foster was a gentleman to my wife and me.
We took as many pictures as we wanted and ask just as many questions about the car and his product.
Upon leaving, Dwight has asked us to return to see the updates on Miss Belvedere. We accepted.
All I can say is, that the Ultra One product that he uses does work.
Had Dwight not come forward and offered to stablilze the car, it would have been a complete loss.

To all those of you inquiring about the effectiveness of and wondrous claims made about Ultra One’s de-rusting product: it seems to me that two key things are being studiously avoided here–a) the FULL COST of enough of the stuff to de-rust a project of this magnitude, and, b), how MANY APPLICATIONS (or exposures) of the derusting fluid must be used in order to achieve even the level of results seen in the accompanying photos. My guess is that the cost would be prohibitive (at least to the average, and/or amateur restorer) and that there is a reason for the silence on how MUCH is needed–to wit: it not only takes A LOT of the stuff to get down to the original surface, but that one must probably have to add to the fluid used or, at least, ‘restrengthen’ it by adding more and more fresh solution. Perhaps someone from Ultra One could be brave enough and honest enough to answer these questions, sans advertising hype and hyperbole, hmmmmm?

Miss Belvedere is a worthless rusted out piece of junk that should be crushed, period. To think they are wasting a perfectly servicable rust free Savoy in an idiotic attempt to “preserve” that corroded hulk is an absolute travesty.

I have called Ultra One an hand full of times over the past couple of years, as well as e-mailed them but they never respond. They have also pulled down the online forums. It seems the car must have been destroyed trying to take the rust off and they don’t want the bad publicity.

after doing some reading it seems they were more interested in preserving the car from a nuclear attack then water…. and the memorabilia that was left in it to show the “people of the future how forward thinking they were in 1957″ were… yeah…. forward thinking. lets bury a car in a concrete water tank and see what happens to it in 50 years time. i’m dissapointed someone didnt stop for a moment back then and go “hey, maybe we should seal the car in a steel sarcophagus and vacume?” then we would have a near show room quality car instead of a car that should have been left the alone and dropped in a museum to preserve the ending of a good story instead of letting some hero half-baked car restorer’s tear it apart for a publicity stunt.

It is a very sad thing indeed. I believe this car should not have been touched and should be sitting in a Tulsa museum. The entire story is amazing, and I watched the TV viewing episode and read all the newspaper articles up until the day they brought her out.
Being a car guy this is so sad no body though of the water table. I mean seriously this girl has 4 miles on her. This is a story I’ll be talking about for many years to come.

All of the non hazardous rust removers are made from a chelant based chemical and vary little in the way they work and the methodology to apply them. I carry and use a similar, albeit concentrated, type of rust remover. I cannot understand why now, in 2013, the car is not finished. Ultra One appears to have dropped the ball given that all posts were deleted in 2008. It sounds a bit unusual. Personally, there is enough serious frame damage to warrant leaving it in As-Is condition as a historical piece.

I really don’t understand the reason for burying this car in the first place. Someone with too much money not knowing what to do with it? Someone trying to show how well their corosion resistent finish works (it didn’t)? Just a foolish prank? Just no good reason. It was no buried treasurer. It was a bunch of rusted iron. Sad to say but it’s dead and either should be buried again never to be uncovered or sent to the crusher.

I am restoring a 67 Malibu L79 4 spd car that is a real survivor and I thought it has rust issues. This car is beyond restoring unless you are a total mopar fan. It’s not even the Sport Fury with two 4 brl carbs!! I did have one of those back then but got eaten alive by a 58 Chevy Impala with a 348.

The lame brains should of sealed it up in an above ground vault, sprayed the bottom with oil, and packed some charcoal around it to suck up any moisture, or pu it in a closed off museum room, behind a false wall! This is a very good reason why you shouldn’t give some funeral director, 10, 15,ooo or more bucks to put your loved one in a so called metal ‘sealed’ casket. The same thing will happen in time, and what is the purpose? Water is slippery, it will find a way in!